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1. Redeeming the Warrior: Myth-making and Australia's Vietnam Veterans.

Author

Dixon, Chris

Subjects
*VIETNAM veterans, *MYTHOLOGY, *VETERANS, *VIETNAM War, 1961-1975 -- Social aspects, *POLITICS & culture, *TWENTIETH century, *SOCIAL history, *HISTORY, *ARMED Forces, SOCIAL aspects, 20TH century Australian history
Abstract

In late 1960s a powerful myth developed in the United States that Vietnam veterans were spat on when they returned home. A parallel myth survives in Australia with widespread claims that paint or even blood was routinely thrown at returning soldiers. In a 1966 incident, red paint was thrown on Lieutenant Colonel Alex V. Preece as he led the First Battalion through Sydney. The Australian myth remains central to perceptions of Australian Vietnam veterans as despised outsiders and feeds into contemporary demands that Australians support their soldiers and the wars in which they are involved. This paper explores connections between cultural politics in the Unites States and Australia, particularly as they pertain to the contentious legacies of the 1960s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2014
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2. The Battle of Brisbane: a Thanksgiving Like No Other.

Author

Emsley, Clive

Subjects
*WORLD War II, *MILITARY personnel attitudes, *RIOTS, *TWENTIETH century, *HISTORY, *ARMED Forces, UNITED States armed forces -- Foreign service, 20TH century United States armed forces
Abstract

The article reports on the "Battle of Brisbane," a riot occurring November 26, 1942 between American and Australian Armed Forces stationed in Brisbane, Queensland during World War II. Tensions between soldiers of the two countries had already been established based on issues such as rate of pay, access to luxuries, and racial attitudes. When U.S. Army Military Police stopped a group of Australian and American soldiers, violence ensued. The incident was downplayed in local papers because of censorship.

Published
2013